Gov't to add France as payment location in external debt bill

The proposed bill to change the location of Argentine external debt payments will undergo a last-minute alteration, as government officials plan to add France as an alternative site for bond jurisdictions along with Buenos Aires.

Victory Front senators met today with Legal and Technical secretary Carlos Zannini and Treasury officer Angelina Abbona, who revealed the changes to the bill which will be debated tomorrow in the Upper House.

Later, government Senate sources let slip that the main modification to the initiative presented in August by President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner would be "the widening of the payment jurisdiction to France."

The proposal, that formed part of an alternative project tabled by Sergio Massa's Renewal Front, would offer French law and jurisdiction as an alternative option to Argentina for holders of restructured bonds, given the legislation in the country that protects against punitive action from so-called 'vulture funds'.

Tomorrow's session will begin around midday and the Victory Front is expected to vote the measure through alone, due to the fact that the bulk of the opposition have registered their intention to vote against the initiative or abstain.

The government aims to sign the bill into law before September 30, when Argentina faces new interest services of 200 million dollars to creditors. Previous attempts to pay bondholders were thwarted by New York judge Griesa, who ruled that holdout creditors had to be paid before those holding titles restructured in 2005 and 2010.